Sweets and Sinners
by justlook3
Summary: Single father Eliot Spencer's blog is the hottest thing in the parenting blog world. Cora McRory's been sent by her boss to sweet talk him into writing a book. But when they meet, something real starts to develop. Will their budding romance survive when more than one truth comes out? AU based on Eliot's daddy blogger persona from "The Toy Job."
1. Chapter 1

Inside a cozy office, a raven haired woman was sitting at her desk, rolling her eyes as she spoke on the telephone. "I understand that, Mr. Sterling. But he has been most reluctant to sign with us." She rolled her eyes again as she listened to the person on the other end. "However, to our advantage, none of our competitors have had any more luck. And of course, none of them are me. I promise you, Mr. Sterling, that we will have him signed with our agency by the end of the month."

After a few more exchanges, she hung up the phone with a whispered, "wanker." She bit her lip and turned toward her laptop, studying the page that was open. This was going to be difficult, but she was Sophie Deveraux and she always got her man, or woman, or in one case guinea pig. She was the hottest literary agent in the business, scoring coups and bringing in huge commissions for her agency. But she couldn't understand for the life of her why this particular individual was giving her such a hassle. Being reluctant was an understatement, he was downright hostile and he'd succeeded in blocking every number she could think of using. At least none of the other agencies were any more successful and she'd heard some had given up.

It made no sense. Actors and musicians, sure, they were often reluctant to write a book for a variety of reasons. But a blogger? Bloggers succeeded by marketing themselves, they were spotlight hogs, they generally jumped at any chance to be on a talk show or write a book. But not this one, he'd suddenly become an Internet star with barely any marketing at all. She sighed, leaning her chin on her palm, it made no sense. But she was Sophie Deveraux and she was going to crack this nut. She was just going to have to take a different, more hands on approach. Just a little bit differently than her usual style.

She leaned forward and clicked on her intercom. "Amy? Could you send Cora in here please?"

Cora McRory, her assistant, entered the room. Cora had just turned 30, but still possessed that fresh faced look of small town girl in the big city. Which was probably because she'd only come to New York last year, part of a "things to do before 30" bucket list. She was pretty, a fair redhead with blue eyes and just the right combination of sass and girl next door. She would be perfect for what Sophie had in mind.

"You wanted to see me, Ms. Deveraux?"

"Ah, yes, dear, come pull up a chair. I have something I want you to see."

Cora dutifully brought a chair around, though she'd looked surprised by the request. Sophie supposed she was used to sitting across from her boss.

When Cora was seated, Sophie nudged the laptop toward her. "This is publishing's next big star."

Cora looked at the screen and probably didn't even realize she was raising an eyebrow. "Newbie Blog Dad?" she read off the screen, her voice dripping with skepticism. Sophie had to admit that had been her initial reaction as well. But it was this bit of sass that made Cora perfect for Sophie's new and different tactic.

Sophie chuckled. "Admittedly that was my reaction when it was brought to my attention. But, it makes sense when you think about it. Bloggers writing books is of course, the newest thing in publishing." Cora nodded next to her. "But while food blog publishing is still hot, the mommy blogger market is quite saturated. Mommy bloggers are a dime a dozen. But a daddy blogger?" Sophie warmed to her theme, hands flapping. "That's a rare beast, like a unicorn. Newbie Blog Dad should be begging us to be his agent."

"But he isn't?" Cora sounded perplexed, a bit like Sophie was. "Forgive me if I'm wrong but isn't viral blogging all about self marketing?"

"Exactly!" Sophie said pointing at her. "I knew that's why I hired you, you're sharp. Newbie Blog Dad or rather Eliot Spencer, is rather reluctant for a blogger. He's gone absolutely viral, but he won't do talk shows and he absolutely refuses to talk book deals. I mean I suppose he might be trying to protect his son from the limelight, but . . . ." Sophie shrugged, run out of rationale for this man's behavior.

"So where does that leave us?" Cora asked. "If he won't talk book deals, aren't we just out of luck?"

"Well we would, but you know me. I'm Sophie Deveraux."

"And you always get your man," Cora grinned.

Sophie took a deep breath, "plus Sterling is breathing down my neck. He wants this deal done by the end of the month. Which is where you come in."

"Me?" Cora's eyes were wide. "What about me?"

"You were an actress, correct?"

"I . . .in high school, community theater, I didn't even major in drama. But what does that have to do . . . ." Cora's eyes widened even further. "What are you suggesting Ms. Deveraux?"

"You and I are going to Tulsa. I'm going to lay low, probably be in and out. You, on the other hand, are going to befriend Mr. Spencer."

"Ms. Deveraux, with all due respect, this is a literary agency, not the CIA. . . .I simply can't . . . ."

"Oh darling, I'm not asking you to seduce the man, for heaven's sakes. He's a single father, I'm sure he'd relish an adult to chat with. Just be yourself and make friends with him. Flatter him, convince him that writing a book would do wonders for his life and his son's future. Then I'll do all the heavy lifting from there. He won't even need to know you work for me."

"We can't do this online?"

Sophie sighed. "Believe me, I have tried absolutely everything. This is our last ditch effort. Cora, darling, I do understand, you're a small town girl with values. But . . . " Sophie wasn't the best in the business for nothing, she put on a concerned face. "Mr. Sterling is not happy with me and my failure to deliver. If I don't deliver, I will be out of a job. Now, I'm sure I will find another position quickly, but I can't protect my staff. Would be want Amy out of a job? She's got a baby on the way. Or you? Do you want to go back to waiting tables or back home to Indiana?"

Cora groaned but Sophie knew she'd hit the mark. Especially with the threat of pregnant Amy's job, Cora was a soft hearted girl. "Alright, I'll do it."

"Excellent, we leave tomorrow. Go ahead and take the afternoon off, you'll need to pack and make whatever arrangements you need. Hopefully it won't take us three weeks, but be prepared." Sophie slid a file folder over to Cora. "This is all of the information we've been able to gather on Mr. Spencer. I suggest you study up."

* * *

In a house in a quiet suburban neighborhood, a man with slightly shaggy brown hair was seated on a stool at a kitchen island, looking at the laptop in front of him. He scowled at something on the screen before shaking his head and getting up. He headed over to the stove where a pot bubbled away. He grabbed a spoon, stirred the contents of the pot and then took a taste. He thought for a minute and then nodded his head. He set the spoon down on the rest and then went over to the sliding door that lead from the kitchen to his backyard.

"Dash! Lunch is ready!"

He counted to 5 and his son, a bundle of four year old energy, came barreling into the house, his dog hot on his heels.

"Wash up!" he called as his son ran toward the bathroom. The dog, Trevor, hovered around his food bowl and his owner laughed and grabbed the bag of dog food.

"What's for lunch?" came a voice that didn't belong to his son. He would have jumped if he hadn't been used to her by now.

"Don't ya'll have food at your house, Parker?"

His blonde sister shrugged and headed over to the pot. "Not as good as your food, Eliot, you know that. Ooh is that veggie chili? You make the best."

Eliot rolled his eyes. "Your husband coming here to eat too?"

"No," Parker waved her hands vaguely. "He had something or other."

"Of course," Eliot said. "Wash your hands, I'm not running a zoo here."

"Yes, Dad," Parker said, making a face at him.

"Call me that one more time and I won't be feeding you anymore," but he got down another bowl. He should have done it to begin with his sister having an uncanny ability to show up whenever he was cooking.

"I want lots of cheese, Daddy," Dash said entering the kitchen. "Hi, Aunt Parker."

"Hey squirt," Parker said.

Eliot ruffled his son's hair. "Sure thing champ. Go take a seat."

Dash carefully climbed up onto the stool next to Parker. Eliot set the hot sauce in front of Parker and handed her a bowl before turning to fixing Dash's lunch.

Parker started in without waiting for anyone else, which was typical. "You should put this recipe on the blog, it's really good."

Eliot gave a non committal grunt as he put a handful of cheese in Dash's bowl and stirred.

"Be careful with that, it's hot, blow on it." he cautioned the boy as he set the bowl in front of him.

"Yes, Daddy," Dash said, taking a spoonful and very carefully blowing on it. Eliot grinned at him briefly before turning to making his own lunch.

"Who is Sophie Deveraux?" Parker asked suddenly.

"What did I tell you about looking at my email?" Eliot asked, his tone annoyed.

"I'm not looking at it on purpose!" Parker exclaimed. "You left it open and there's a bunch of emails from this Sophie person. I wanted to know who she is."

Eliot rolled his eyes and shut the laptop as he came to stand at the island. "She's some . . .woman who is after me to write a book."

"About what?"

Eliot shrugged. "It don't matter, I'm not interested."

"Well . . ." Parker took a bite of her chili and contemplated. "Maybe you should write a book. Why not?"

"You know why Parker."

Parker looked slightly confused and opened her mouth to ask a question but her nephew beat her to it.

"Why does Aunt Parker ask so many questions?"

"Yeah, Aunt Parker, why do you ask so many questions?" Eliot grinned at her teasingly.

Parker huffed and went back to her chili. And Eliot dropped a kiss on his son's mop of brown curls and muttered a thank you before turning back to his lunch.


	2. Chapter 2

On the plane, Cora had read quite a bit of _Newbie Blog Dad's_ blog. She found his writing to be charming, yet still down to Earth. Sometimes there was a bit of melodrama there, especially early on. She didn't know all that much about blogging but she assumed it was just a matter of finding his style or voice. There were elements of sadness too, Eliot Spencer was a single father because his wife had died of cancer when their son was only two. She wasn't mentioned very often on the blog and when she was, on Mother's Day and what appeared to be other important dates in their relationship, it was almost as if a different voice was talking about her. But then she supposed that his usual cheerful breezy tone wasn't appropriate. Oddly enough she found that more solemn side of Eliot to be more attractive. Wasn't sure what that said about her.

Cora shook her head. She wasn't supposed to be after a love connection. Her job was to sweet talk a man into writing a book. She honestly didn't understand why he was such a hard sell. He was a great writer and books by popular bloggers were bestsellers. Eliot's blog seemed to be his sole source of income and she knew her boss. Sophie Deveraux would get me a lucrative deal that would greatly help secure his son's future.

Cora could understand why he might not do talk shows, it was far easier to be outgoing behind a computer screen. But the book wouldn't necessarily need that kind of promotion.

She sighed as she prepared to exit the plane. Unlocking the mystery of why Eliot Spencer wouldn't sign a book deal was her job now. Which is exactly why she was almost glad he lived in Tulsa. The perfect person to help her solve a mystery lived in a suburb not far from the one Eliot lived in.

"So," Sophie was saying as they entered the terminal. "I've arranged a driver to take us to the hotel downtown. We'll need to arrange for a car to hire for you as Mr. Spencer lives out in the suburbs."

"Oh," Cora said, adjusting her bag on her shoulder. "I'm not going to the hotel. My uncle is picking me up."

"Your uncle?" Sophie raised her eyebrows. "You didn't mention an uncle living in Tulsa."

Cora chuckled. "He's technically my cousin, my mother's cousin. But they were practically like siblings growing up, so I call him uncle. Uncle Nate. Nate Ford."

Sophie stopped dead. "The Nate Ford? The crime novelist?"

Cora grinned. "One and the same. He's . . .well ever since his divorce, he's been kinda wandering. He was doing research for a book in Oklahoma and bought a ranch. It's one of those 'used to be in the middle of nowhere but now is surrounded by the suburbs' kinds. So he actually lives a few miles away from Mr. Spencer."

"Interesting," Sophie mused. "He looking for a new agent?"

Cora laughed and Sophie continued. "Never mind. Actually this could work well, visiting your uncle is a perfect excuse when our blogger asks why you're in town." Sophie rubbed her hands together. "Oh I'm so glad I asked you!"

Cora took a deep breath and forced a smile but said nothing else.

Sophie's driver was waiting as soon as they entered baggage claim and she was whisked away after ensuring that Cora would be alright. Cora checked on what carousel her bag was on and then heard her name being called.

"Cora!"

"Uncle Nate!" Nate was always a bit of an awkward hugger, but they hugged anyway.

"You got a bag?" Nate asked after a minute.

She nodded and after the usual bit of a wait, they were on their way.

* * *

After dinner, sitting in his living room, Nate looked over at his niece. "You gonna tell me why you're really in town?"

Cora's eyes were a bit wide. "I came to visit you."

Nate shook his head. "Come on Cora, don't kid a kidder. Not that it's not great to see you, but your mom tells me you've got a great job at an agency in New York City. Somehow I doubt you're just going to randomly appear on my doorstep for a month. So what's really going on, kiddo? You in some kind of trouble?"

"No!" Cora exclaimed then lowered her voice, shaking her head. "It's nothing like that."

"But it is something, you're nervous and you won't look at me."

Cora grimaced. "I'm here for work."

"In Oklahoma?" Nate looked very confused and took a sip of Scotch. "How so?"

Cora took a sip of the wine that she'd been slowly drinking. "It's all my boss' idea. Sophie Deveraux . . . ."

"The Sophie Deveraux?" Nate asked, in the same tone that Sophie had used in the airport, followed by a slow whistle. "She's a shark. Does it have something to do with me? I'm quite happy with my agent."

Cora giggled. "No, she didn't even know I had a relative here." Cora sighed, suddenly serious. "There's this blogger, Newbie Blog Dad. . . ."

"Newbie Blog Dad?" Nate made a face.

"That's what I said," Cora laughed briefly and then composed herself. "His name is Eliot Spencer and he's a widower with a small child. His blog is apparently the latest thing in the blogsphere. My agency wants to represent him in a book deal."

"Well that makes sense," Nate nodded, taking another sip. "Blogger books are hot commodities. But I'm unclear as to why you're here."

"He lives in Lancome. Which is why we're here. But he's really reluctant to write a book. I mean, reluctant. No one can make headway with him. Sophie's pretty much at her wit's end. Which is why I'm here." Cora rung her hands. "She wants me to go undercover. Befriend the man and talk him into wanting to write a book. Then I deliver him to her."

Nate was silent for a while. Cora took a big gulp of her wine then looked up at him. "It's awful I know. Unethical, sneaky, underhanded. I don't know why I let her talk me into this. I can't do it."

"Nonsense," Nate said, his eyes lighting up and what her mother called his "scheming face" locked on. "You're a Ford, Cora, don't ever forget that."

Cora snorted, their families had Chicago mob roots going back decades, even though they'd been descended from younger sons and daughters who'd landed in the corn fields of Indiana to escape their family name. Still though, the art of the con flowed through their veins.

"I know," she shook her head. "As much as I deny it. Served me well in drama club. But you're okay with this? It isn't honest."

"No, but he's a single father? Blog his only income?"

"Seems that way, I haven't read the file that Sophie gave me."

"Blogs can be flashes in the pan. He's probably raking in the revenue now, but in a year? They'll be on to the next big thing. A book, that's big money, especially with Deveraux repping him. He's probably afraid the blog is all he's got in him. You just gotta build up his confidence and draw him out. Give me that file and we'll hatch a plan in the morning."

* * *

Dash was asleep, the dog was out in the yard and Eliot was prepping breakfast for the next day. It would have to be something quick because he was opening his sister's candy store tomorrow. She'd called him an hour ago with a convoluted excuse that only made sense to her. It also took 20 minutes for her to tell when she could have simply asked him to open the store for her. He shook his head as he started cutting up fruit for overnight oatmeal. Dash would want cereal, but this was way healthier.

He loved his sister but she was . . . .Well, they always chalked up Parker's personality to whatever had happened before his mother had caught a 12 year old street kid trying to steal from her purse. Instead of calling the cops, their momma had brought the girl home and they eventually got through the red tape to adopt her. Parker was fiercely devoted to her family and had a huge heart, but there was no denying that she was odd.

Odd made her fit well with her husband. Hardison (not even his wife used his first name and Eliot had heard it for the first and only time at their wedding) was a genius, there was no doubt about that. But while he was the King of the Internet, he didn't really do well with actual in person social interaction. It made him perfect for Parker, really, they were the perfect match. But sometimes they both drove Eliot up a wall.

He owed them, he owed them big. He would never have survived losing Aimee and raising their son on his own without them. Which is why he'd do anything for them, including run their store whenever they asked. But just because he loved them and owed them, didn't mean that he didn't wish they were a little less Hardison and Parker. Or maybe, just maybe, that he could have an actual face to face conversation with an adult who was a notch below odd. Normal was probably asking just a bit too much after all.

Oatmeal finished, he put the jars in the refrigerator and filled up the coffeepot to have it ready to go. He stood in front of the laptop, mentally going over what he still needed to do. He'd already got Dash's clothes ready for the next day and was thawing something from the freezer for lunch when they got home from the store. Dishes were done, still had to let the dog in.

He grabbed a post it and scribbled a note about "chili recipe and quick breakfast ideas" and slapped it on the laptop.

"Gotta publish or perish, or whatever the hell they say."

"Trevor! C'mon boy!" he yelled out the sliding door and the dog reluctantly came in.

"You can terrorize the squirrels tomorrow. Time for bed."

The dog bounded up the stairs, heading for Dash's room as Eliot chuckled behind him. He was ready for bed himself, being a stay at home parent was more exhausting than he'd ever thought it could be. And tomorrow was going to be a long day.


	3. Chapter 3

_Sweets and Sinners_ began life as a hardware store in the 1950s back before Lancome became just another Tulsa suburb. Several businesses had come and gone in the space over the years before it became a retro candy store in the 1990s. Parker and Hardison had bought the store last year and except for the collection of antiques (now science fiction and television related toys) not much had really changed. They'd added some sodas to the lineup, mostly orange and a few types of gummies (Eliot actually hadn't believed there were any more types considering they already stocked 50) but that was really it.

Weekday mornings during school were generally slow. Sometimes you got mommas with their preschool aged children coming in for a treat or people buying last minute birthday presents for work colleagues. When Hardison bought the place, he added an online store, so Eliot knew he'd probably be busy filling orders. It had done wonders for their business and they still only sold about a quarter of their inventory online. Hardison was hoping to add more, but they'd have to hire on more people for that.

As predicted, the morning was fairly quiet as far as walk in business went. Eliot kept busy filling Internet orders and a large order of wedding favors. He was busy enough but the relative lack of physical customers meant that he could frequently check out what Dash was doing. Eliot had thought about sending Dash to preschool but with all the upheaval during the last couple of years, he'd finally decided to try homeschooling. Dash was bright and was moving steadily through the preschool curriculum. The toughest part was really getting him to stay still. Parker and Hardison were actually helpful when it came to that, Parker was always hyper and Hardison was smart in creative ways. So between the two of them, they helped Eliot figure out ways to teach numbers, shapes and letters that he doubted anyone else did.

Dash was sitting at a table in the corner of the store and after Eliot went over the shapes and letters the boy was coloring to make sure he remembered, he left the boy to get back to his artwork. It was always a good idea to take advantage of any time the child was sitting still.

He'd been busy talking to his son so he hadn't seen the woman come in. She was standing in front of the display of hard candies, looking lost in thought. He could only see her in profile, long red hair, skinny jeans, blue sweater. He'd always had a thing for redheads and he couldn't quite stop himself from checking her out. He'd always appreciated a pretty woman.

She grabbed a bag and took the lid off a jar and he shook his head. That was the vastly inferior of the two varieties of that flavor that the store carried. He'd argued with Parker and Hardison on deaf ears not to carry it. "Some people love it," they'd said and he'd rolled his eyes and said, "well, some people are wrong," but he'd been ignored. Well, he wasn't going to let this girl leave with terrible candy.

He walked over, noting that she was intent on her task and hadn't noticed him. "Excuse me, ma'am?"

The redhead jumped a little and then turned to him, gasping just a bit. She had pretty blue eyes which widened a bit as she looked at him.

"Sorry, bout that, didn't mean to startle ya. I'm just thinkin' that ya really don't want those."

Her look of shock faded and she narrowed her eyes at him. "These are my favorites."

Eliot tried and failed to keep from rolling his eyes and now she was looking irritated. He couldn't have that at all. Couldn't lose a customer even if she was a fool.

"Have you ever had these?" he asked, tapping the next bin and trying a different tactic.

She looked at him strangely and shook her head. "No."

"Try it, trust me, you'll never want those again."

She looked at him skeptically as he handed her a piece. "Doesn't that sign say no sampling?"

"Oh that," he laughed. "I know the owners. Runnin' the place today. We just don't want the kids to take one of everything, we'll give ya a sample if you ask nice. Go ahead, try it."

"Oh . . ." she blushed, it was rather becoming. He guessed she must have thought he was some weirdo hitting on her. She took the offered piece and carefully unwrapped it and then gave it a thoughtful chew. Her eyes widened and she looked at him. "Oh, wow."

"See? I tell my sister and her husband that this is the far better product, but they tell me that one is a better seller. So I gotta spread the word, person by person."

She smiled, she really was pretty. "Well, the next time a stranger tells me I'm making a bad candy choice, I'll listen."

He smiled back at her. "You uh, need help pickin' out anything else?"

She grinned, that was definitely a flirtatious grin, this day was looking up already. It had been a while since he'd flirted, wondered how rusty he was at it, he figured the answer was very. But he was willing to give it a try anyway. "Yeah, actually, the selection is rather overwhelming, someone who knows it would be helpful."

"So I take it you've not been in before?"

"No, I'm not from around here. Visiting my uncle for a few weeks, but he's working today so I thought I'd explore."

Eliot nodded. "Well there's been a store here since the 50s. It's been a candy store since the 90s, my sister and brother-in-law bought it last year. They didn't change much really, somehow managed to find more gummies but otherwise, it's just as crazy and jam packed as ever."

"How can you find more gummies?" she asked, wandering over to them. "There must be 50 different kinds here!"

"57," he said. "Each is very distinctive."

They were going around the store, him showing her all his favorites. He had a feeling she'd had no intention on buying as much as she was looking at but he really didn't mind. It felt good to know he hadn't completely lost it. He was thinking about asking her name about the time that Dash wandered over. His son was good about not interrupting when there was a customer but he'd left him alone longer than normal.

"Daddy, I gotta bathroom." Dash had some problems using the bathroom at the store, the door was a little tricky to open, something that he'd been planning on coming over some weekend and fixing before they got in trouble with some inspector.

The woman smiled gently. "Go ahead, I'm going to look in the fudge case."

"Thanks," he grinned back and escorted Dash to the back.

* * *

Cora took a deep breath as she collected herself in front of the case. Flirting with him had been far easier than she expected. Uncle Nate was right, Eliot did seem like he was a bit desperate to have a grown up to talk to. What she hadn't been prepared for was how good looking he was. Rugged good looks and those eyes and that smile and god, those eyes. He was very particular about things, he'd rankled her at first when she was supposed to flirt with him. But he had an odd sort of charm and she found that she genuinely liked him. His little boy was adorable too and so well mannered, he'd sat in the back coloring for most of the time. Four year olds in her experience, not that she had much, were a lot more hyper than that. Especially in a candy store. She wondered what the little boy's name was. Eliot referred to the boy as "Champ" on the blog and there hadn't been a name in the file. Probably hadn't occurred to Sophie to dig that hard.

Also as intriguing as she was finding Eliot Spencer, his personality didn't mesh at all with the personality expressed on his blog. That was really odd but then again she didn't know very many bloggers. And with the exception of her uncle, the authors she'd met on her job were completely different from what you'd expect from their books. Nate, on the other hand, was exactly what you'd expect. She stifled a giggle at the thought as father and son rejoined her.

She smiled at them as they approached. The boy grinned at her, "I'm Dashiell and this is Daddy."

"Eliot," the man supplied but Cora didn't miss the weird look that crossed his face when the boy said his name. There was a story there. But Dashiell was still talking.

"But everyone calls me Dash, except Daddy usually calls me Champ. What's your name?"

"Cora," she grinned. "Cora McRory. Everyone calls me Cora."

"You have my favorites!" Dash exclaimed.

He then excitedly told her all about his favorite candies and then proceeded to take her on a four year old's version of a nickel tour of the store. Cora couldn't understand half of what he was saying, he was so excited and talking so fast, but he was adorable. She found she didn't mind. Eliot kept looking apologetic but she just shook her head and followed Dash.

They were standing in front of a wall display that was completely full of cereal boxes.

"These are Auntie Parker's. She won't let anyone touch them."

Eliot shrugged behind them. "I still think they bought this place because they ran out of room for her cereal collection and needed a place for them."

Cora giggled. "Well I collect elephants, so everyone has a hobby."

"Oooh, I love elephants!" Dash exclaimed and ran to show Cora a picture he'd just colored of them.

"I am so sorry," Eliot said. "He gets excited sometimes. We uh don't see a lot of people."

"It's fine, I love kids." That was a bit of a white lie, but Dash really was adorable.

Time did fly and Cora still hadn't paid for her bags of candy yet. She'd been too busy chatting with Dash and flirting a bit with his father.

"Hey," a female voice said as the bell above the door rang. "We're back."

"My store still in one piece?" came from a male.

Cora looked over from where she was seated with Dash to watch Eliot greet a blonde woman and a tall African-American man. Judging from the man's comments they must be Eliot's sister and brother-in-law. Parker was the sister, she remembered from Dash's comments about the cereal.

She decided to concentrate on Dash, looking like she was eavesdropping too much was going to give her away.

* * *

Eliot really hadn't realized the time slipping away. That was a little unsettling, he was always aware of everything, habit from the military that had never gone away. But Cora had somehow distracted him. He had found her as easy to talk to as his son had. She was sweet and pretty and reminded him a bit of Aimee. Not the same, Aimee was a rough and tumble country girl, Cora had a bit of small town in her, but the sheltered girl next door type. But she had that red headed spark about her and she was really refreshingly that notch below odd that he'd been hoping to talk to. He'd kept her in the store way too long though. He was sure she had things she needed to do.

He got up from the table when the Hardisons returned.

"Hey," he walked over to the counter where Hardison was stashing his bag. "I got all of the favors packaged up and all but one of the Internet orders filled."

"Who's she?" Parker asked, pointing toward the table where Cora was sitting with Dash.

"Her name is Cora, she's a customer."

"Uh huh, pretty mama there don't look like she's buying anything."

"Well," Eliot was pretty sure he blushed and that was the wrong thing to do with his sister.

"You like her!"

"Maybe?" Eliot was not sure why his voice was coming out so high pitched. _What had happened to him?_ He used to be so smooth. "Wait, Parker!"

"Hi," Parker bounced over to the table. "I'm Parker, Eliot's sister."

Cora smiled up at her even as Eliot inwardly cringed. "Hi, I'm Cora McRory. You have a fantastic store here. I'm already buying way too much candy on your brother's recommendation."

"Huh," Parker said. "You married? Got any kids?"

"Uh . . . ."

"Parker!" Eliot said, putting his hands on her arm. "She's a customer!"

"But, I mean if you . . . ."

By this time, Hardison joined the group. "C'mon on baby girl, let's let Cora here get her purchases together. She's gotta pay."

"Oh, I do like money," Parker said, letting Hardison drag her off. Eliot rolled his eyes, both of them seemed way too interested in the newcomer.

"I'm sorry about that," he said to her. "My sister . . .she's different."

"It's okay, really. But I really should pay for these."

"Yeah," Eliot watched her gather up the bags that had been lined up on the table and headed over to Hardison at the register. "Ok Champ, time to get your stuff. I promised you a trip to the playground."

Dash bit his lip and then looked up at his father. "Daddy?"

"Yeah?"

"Can Cora come to the playground with us?"

"I don't know, Champ, she's got stuff to do."

"We can ask, right?"

"Dash . . . ."but Eliot was always helpless against those puppy dog eyes. _Aimee's eyes_. He sighed. "Alright, but ask her politely."

"Yay! Thank you Daddy!" Dash tore off to the counter and Eliot didn't even bother to tell the boy not to run.

Eliot chuckled a little. This was either going to be the best thing that happened today or a total disaster.


	4. Chapter 4

Cora still wasn't sure how she'd been talked into going to the playground with Eliot and Dash. It was the child's puppy dog eyes, if Sophie knew about children with puppy dog eyes and their powers of persuasion, she'd probably be adopting one post haste. She knew that the invite was a positive thing, it meant that the plan was working.

But she felt awful about it. The whole plan just didn't sit well with her and it was getting worse the more time she spent with the Spencers. She liked Eliot. Legitimately liked him, even though he was nothing like the persona from the blog. Not that she'd let on to him in any way that she'd read the blog, that had been one of Nate's cautions.

"It wouldn't make sense for you to know who he was, you don't have any children, so reading his blog wouldn't be something you'd normally do."

Things were really going successfully. Eliot had even asked her out for dinner, though she'd regretfully declined, citing having dinner with Nate. She'd found herself suggesting they get coffee tomorrow and that was that. Both Sophie and Nate would be overjoyed by the whole thing but Cora's stomach was twisting.

Dating him was not supposed to be part of the plan. Nor was the fact that she was pretty sure once he got her on that date, she'd not be able to stop herself from saying yes to another one.

* * *

Hardison was sitting on his couch, laptop open, frowning at something on the screen. He went to take a swig out of his open bottle of orange soda when his wife suddenly appeared beside him, causing him to nearly spill the soda everywhere.

"Mama! How many times do I have to tell you not to do that? Give a man a heart attack."

Parker shrugged, turning to her bowl of cereal. "Eliot called and invited us to dinner."

"So you're eating?"

"Yeah, so?"

Hardison just shook his head and went back to his computer. After a few moments, his wife spoke again.

"Isn't that that girl from the store?"

"Yeah," Hardison said, "Eliot seemed to like her."

Parker frowned, taking a contemplative chew. "Isn't doing that something that Eliot would be all growly about?"

Her husband shrugged. "Look babe, I'm just checking out her Facebook and stuff. Things people do these days."

"Hmm, I'm gonna tell him you did this."

"Hey, go ahead, I'm just looking out for our boy."

Parker was quiet for a long time, eating. She finished her cereal. "Find anything?"

"Nah, not really. Her LinkedIn had something that might make Eliot paranoid, but I don't think it's a problem. Otherwise, she's really really normal."

Parker made a face, "boring. Shame, because I liked her."

Hardison stared at her, mouth open.

"What?"

"You know what? Never mind. Let's go get ready for dinner since you already had your appetizer."

* * *

It was after Dash was in bed before the subject of Cora came up that evening. The adults were sitting in Eliot's living room, supposedly watching a game on tv. They were mostly talking, well Hardison and Parker were and Eliot would interject when it suited him.

"So how was the playground with Cora?" Hardison finally asked, a little bit of a teasing tone to his voice. Parker opened her mouth but he tapped her arm and she let him continue.

Eliot grinned, taking a swig of beer. "Got a date for tomorrow afternoon. Momma's got Dash, so no problems. I asked her out for tonight but she's got plans with her uncle."

Parker clapped her hands. "I liked her! But Hardison was checking her out."

Eliot raised his eyebrows and gave Hardison a pointed stare. Hardison caught on and rolled his eyes.

"Not like that, man! Jesus, what do you take me for? I'm a happily married man."

"Then what is she talkin' about?"

Hardison sighed, "look man, I did what any ordinary person would do when their bro-in-law is smitten with a girl he just met."

Eliot glared at him. "What . . .did . . .you . . .do?"

"Hey, man, don't get all ragey with me. I just Googled the chick. Social media, that kinda thing. Heck, little man Dash could have done the same thing."

Eliot took a deep breath, rolling his eyes. "Alright, what did you find?"

"Well, start off, what did she tell you?"

Eliot paused, thinking about it. "She's from Indiana. She works in New York City but stuff got weird with her job and she's spending some time here with her uncle trying to figure some stuff out. Doesn't want to go home, home yet. Suppose I wouldn't blame her, I got the impression it's a small town and she was supposed to be 'girl who makes good.'"

Hardison leaned back and nodded. "That checks out. All her social mentions her town in Indiana. Family seems to own a bar and grill given that it's called McRory's and she used to be a manager there until last year. Found an instagram post about who is probably the uncle. Nathan Ford, he's some sort of novelist, lives in the next town over."

"The Nathan Ford?" Eliot jumped up and headed to the bookcase and pulled down a couple of books. He held up one where "NY Times Bestselling Author Nathan Ford" was highlighted. "Crime novelist, actually really good. So basically you invaded this girl's privacy to find she's just a girl from Indiana visiting her uncle?"

"Hey raging bull! She doesn't have any of her accounts on lock down, so it's hardly invading her privacy. She ain't much of a poster anyway. But you may wanna know that according to Linked In, the job that's gone weird is with a literary agency in New York City."

"Literary agent? Damnit Hardison, lead with that!"

"Oh come on man, she's a personal assistant. She probably got sick of lying to her boss' wife about his mistress."

Eliot started pacing. "Hardison, you know why this damn book thing ain't happenin'!"

"Bro, calm down! Has she mentioned the blog at all?"

"No," Eliot said. "She didn't appear to recognize me at all."

"Well, of course not! Why would little miss single no kids be reading a daddy blog? She's a low man on the totem pole, out picking up dry cleaning and picking out the wife's Christmas present. She ain't closing deals. Just relax, okay? She's just a corn fed Midwestern girl who had a bad time in the big city and is looking to regroup. Nothing to worry about."

"She seemed nice," Parker offered. "She was nice to Dash."

Eliot grinned in spite of himself. "She was real good with him, wasn't she?"

"So relax!" Hardison said, steering his brother-in-law back to the sofa and pressing a beer in his hand. "You need to get out with an adult female type. It's time to move on. She ain't one of those fawning mamas you meet online. She's never been married, she ain't got baggage. And if it don't work out, well she'll be back to Indiana or wherever and you won't have to run into her all the time. Have a good time for a change."

"You took care of Aimee for a long time," Parker began and Eliot's face looked pained and he shook his head.

"You did! You just didn't . . . ."Parker took a breath, for once taking the warning looks shot at her by both brother and husband and changed direction. "Eliot, you take care of all of us. You take care of me and Hardison. And Dash. And Daddy when he was dying . . . ."she took another shaky breath, the family that had adopted her meant the whole world. Eliot and his father might not have always seen eye to eye but the older Spencer had somehow understood his adopted child better than his biological ones. "And our sisters when they're here. And even Momma though she hates it! But no one ever takes care of you Eliot and maybe Cora could."

Eliot smiled at her gently when she finished her impassioned speech and she curled up next to him on the couch.

"Fine," Eliot conceded. "I'm probably worryin' over nothing. That damn blog, more trouble than it's worth."

"That blog's what's allowing you to stay home with Dash like Aimee wanted to do herself," Hardison pointed out. "Think you need to pay it more respect."

"Yeah, whatever," Eliot grunted. "Let's just focus on this game."

"Uh-huh and Miss Cora?"

Eliot grinned. "I meet her for coffee and we'll see how it goes."

"That's my man!" Hardison high fived him and Parker rolled her eyes and then asked a question about the game.

* * *

"He asked you out?" Nate asked, "that's wonderful news. Isn't it?"

Cora looked downcast. "Technically I said no and then turned around and asked him out! What is wrong with me?"

"I don't follow. Isn't this what you're supposed to be doing? The fact that you hit it off with him so well should be excellent news. Have you told your boss?"

"I told her that I made contact and it's going well. I didn't add this to the texts. Uncle Nate, I just can't do this!"

"Well," Nate sighed and looked over at her. "I assume if you don't, you're going to lose your job. But you always have a job back home to go to."

"If I go home with my tail tucked between my legs," Cora flopped on the sofa. "And Ms. Deveraux seems to think that she'll lose her job."

Nate snorted. "That's a play. But she'll land on her feet."

"She said that. But she said that she wouldn't be able to help her staff. I mean if I have to go home, I will. But her secretary is pregnant. She needs that job for the baby. I can't . . . ."

"Hmm," Nate mused. "She really is a shark."

Cora wasn't quite sure if her uncle was appalled by her boss playing the firing the pregnant secretary card or impressed by it. Knowing Nate Ford, he was probably both.

"I probably am being played by her. But I can't really take the chance."

"Well, I suppose you could screw up the date. Go to your boss and say that you struck out with him. He's impossible, etc."

"Yeah," Cora sighed. "That's an option."

"Except," Nate chuckled as he sat next to her. "You don't want to screw it up. You like him. And if you hadn't been sent her on a mission and I hadn't told you how to best meet him, you'd be on cloud nine about this coffee."

Cora's laugh was self effacing. "Pretty much. God, he's good looking. And his son is the most adorable thing. He's such a good dad. The weird thing is, Uncle Nate? He's nothing like I expected from the blog. Honestly, after reading it on the plane, I expected him to annoy me and that I'd have to pretend to like him."

"Really? That's interesting."

"I mean I suppose maybe it's just how that niche works? I don't know that much about parenting blogs."

Nate shrugged. "Can't say that I've ever read one."

"Yeah, I've probably skimmed a mommy blog looking at a recipe from time to time, but his is the first one I've ever read. I wouldn't chose to, honestly. It's a bit too sicky sweet. Except for when he talks about his wife. Then that's the Eliot I met today. It's weird."

"Huh," Nate had an oddly contemplative look on his face. They lapsed into silence for a long time and finally he broke the silence to ask her a question. "So what are you going to do?"

"I don't know," Cora groaned. "Part of me is thinking of researching plane fares to Indiana and slipping out of Tulsa before Sophie can text me. What would you do?"

"If I were you? I'd go out for coffee with Mr. Spencer and forget all about Sophie Deveraux."

Cora opened her eyes and sat bolt up on the sofa. "What? But the whole, what did you call it? Meet-cute setup? That was your idea!"

"Well," Nate chuckled. "Honestly from the file he sounded like a nice guy that maybe you'd hit it off with. Look, I know you've been hurt . . . ."

"Hurt? I think being dumped two weeks before your wedding is more than hurt."

"But it's been a couple of years now and I don't think running off to New York made you happy. This man's probably ready to move on from his own heartbreak. Just go out for coffee with him. If the silly book comes up, talk him into it. Then everyone's happy. If it never does, well tell Sophie Deveraux where to stick her job. I'll hire you to be my assistant. And we'll make sure your friend has something to take care of her baby if it comes to that."

"You . . ." Cora jumped up and ran over to his chair where she kissed his cheek. "You Nathan Ford are a hopeless romantic."

He snorted. "Don't tell anyone. Especially your mother."

"I won't. I'm gonna go to bed. I'm wiped."

"Alright, good night," Cora started to head out of the room. "Hey, Cora? What's this guy's blog's name again?"

"Newbie Blog Dad, why?"

"Just curious. Good night."

And when Cora left, Nate took his drink and went into his study and fired up his computer. He typed "newbie blog dad" into the search engine and sat back.


	5. Chapter 5

Coffee with Eliot was going fairly well. Cora found him much more reserved than she would have expected from his blog. But like she told her uncle, she'd found the real him much more to her liking than the blog persona. He was charming in his way and she really liked it when he laughed or smiled. He was also interested in a wide range of topics, so conversation didn't seem to be lacking.

They'd been talking about Dash when Cora asked the question that she'd been wondering about since she'd been introduced to the boy. "So Dashiell, that's not a common name. Where did you guys come up with it?"

Eliot took a sip of his second cup of coffee which Cora was pretty sure had gone cold by now. He bit his lip and then answered. "My wife was really into mystery novels, it was her idea."

"Oh, like Dashiell Hammett?"

Eliot nodded. "I never really cared much for the name, but she was very . . . .Anyway . . .that's why Dashiell."

"What . . . ."Cora frowned, she knew the answer to the question she was going to ask but she didn't want him to know and wasn't sure how to ask now.

"She passed two years ago," Eliot said, keeping her from asking the question. "Cancer. It was . . .she fought hard but she's free now, better place."

"I'm so sorry," Cora said, even though she knew this fact, it was different hearing it from him. Words were always inadequate.

"Thank you," was all Eliot said. They sat in silence for a few moments and Cora mentally kicked herself.

Then suddenly Eliot looked over at her and took a breath, as if he was desperate to keep the conversation going and was looking for a subject change. He seemed to settle on one. "How about you?"

"Huh?"

"Well, pretty sure you don't have kids."

"No, not yet."

"Been married?"

Cora shook her head ruefully. "Almost. He dumped me for a co-worker two weeks before our wedding."

"Ouch," Eliot shook his head. "Want me to beat him up?"

Cora laughed, though she had a feeling that Eliot could certainly do so and probably would for her. Something about that sent a thrill up her spine. She always did have a thing for the slightly bad boy.

"Nah, I'm better off really. But that's why I went to New York. But honestly I'm feeling like I made a mistake there too. So now I don't know what I'm going to do." Every word she just said was the absolute truth. This little con game was not sitting with her well at all.

"Got something back home?"

"Managing my family's restaurant," she frowned. "I actually liked the restaurant business but working for family. Well you know how it is."

Eliot looked confused for a moment than realized that Cora thought he worked for Parker and Hardison. He laughed but then decided to go with it. "Yeah, I do."

"It's nice that they give you so much time off," Cora added. "Are you sure you don't need to be anywhere?"

"Well that's the fun of working for them, they're real flexible as for being somewhere . . . ."Eliot trailed off as his phone chimed. "Wow, it's almost lunch time. I gotta get home and get lunch started before Momma drops off Dash."

"Oh," Cora's eyes widened as she noticed the time. "Well, I had a great time, Eliot. Maybe we could do this again?"

He grinned at her, considering. "You free right now?"

"Yeah, my uncle's busy. Why?"

"I'm invitin' ya to lunch with me and Champ. What do you say?"

Cora couldn't quite hide her look of skepticism. He was making lunch for a 4 year old and while she liked kids, she wasn't up for dinosaur nuggets and goldfish crackers. Nor did she want him to go to the trouble of making a grown up meal. "What's for lunch?"

"Fish and chips."

"Uh . . . ."

"Oh," Eliot laughed. "You're thinking I'm serving frozen fish sticks and fries from a bag."

"Well . . . ."

"Oh, no, you're getting battered pollock, I'd probably do a beer batter if it was just you and me, but I can't with Dash. And my home made fries."

Cora looked at him sideways. "Really? And I'm not gonna look in the trash can and find take out containers?"

Eliot looked slightly offended then shook his head. "Cora, you need to date a better class of men."

"Clearly," Cora laughed. "Seriously? You're making your own french fries?"

"Hand cut. C'mon, you can watch me cook. Then," he grinned, "when I prove you wrong, I get to pick the next date."

"I like a challenge, it's a lunch date then. Keep in mind that you're talking to an Irish girl here."

"I like a challenge too, Miss McRory."

* * *

Cora perched on a stool against the counter watching Eliot cook. She'd have offered to help, but he was supposed to be impressing her. Besides, she knew better than to get in the way of a cook at work. She had to admit that he seemed to know his way around a kitchen. The proof of course would be in the eating.

The fries were just waiting for their second round of frying when Dash came barreling into the kitchen.

"Hey, Champ," Eliot smiled as the boy came to a stop in front of the island.

"Daddy! Oh, hi Miss Cora!"

"Hi Dash," Cora smiled, "you have a good day?"

"Where's Gran?" Eliot asked, stopping to give his son a hug.

"She said to tell you she'd call later, she had to run."

Eliot nodded, his mother was always on the go and since she knew Eliot was home, would have just made sure she heard her son's voice before leaving.

"Well Champ, we're just about to eat, just gotta finish the fries."

"Ooh fish and chips! Daddy makes the best," Dash told Cora.

"So I've been told," she said with a wink to Eliot.

A little while later, they were sitting down to fish and chips, a gob of ketchup and tartar sauce for Dash and malt vinegar for the adults.

Cora had been impressed when she saw him cooking but was even more so when she ate the results.

"This is amazing, Eliot."

"Why thank you, ma'am," Eliot winked at her. "So did I win our wager?"

"You did indeed. Seriously, we'd put this on our menu, puts our recipe to shame."

A light blush briefly crossed Eliot's cheeks. "That is a compliment comin' from an Irish girl. Always had dreams of opening my own place but . . . ."

"Life is funny sometimes," Cora said, changing the subject by asking Dash about his day.

* * *

Lunch turned into an afternoon of playing games with Dash. Cora knew she really should leave but Dash was hard to resist. Eliot was even harder to resist. And Cora was afraid she was going to have such a good time with them, she was going to completely forget why she'd come to Tulsa in the first place.

It was getting toward dinner time and Dash turned to his father, "can Cora stay for dinner?"

Eliot shook his head. "Miss Cora's visitin' her family, she needs to spend some time with them."

Cora nodded. "I really need to get back home, but I had so much fun today."

Cora gave Dash a hug and then Eliot walked her out. They were standing on the porch, neither one quite sure how to end things.

"I really had a nice time today," Cora offered.

"I'm sorry if we kept you too long," Eliot looked less confident than she'd seen him all day.

She shook her head. "I stayed because I was having fun. I promise. Not just being nice."

"Good, um, I did win that bet."

"You did, where did you want to go?"

"Can I call you in the morning? I've got an idea but I need to check on some stuff first."

"Alright, well I better get going, night Eliot."

He didn't say anything, just looked at her. She admitted she'd been lingering on his porch for a reason. He smiled softly and then leaned forward and brushed a lock of hair behind her ear. She leaned into him and their lips met in a brief sweet kiss.

"Night Cora," he murmured as they parted.

"Right, night," and Cora wouldn't admit that she might have stumbled backing off the porch. Eliot to his credit managed to stifle his chuckle.

* * *

Cora was in her room at her uncle's, somewhat dreamily thinking over the date. She'd not had a day like this in a long time and Eliot made her feel things that she thought she'd never feel again. She couldn't wait for morning and his call.

Her phone buzzed and she grabbed it with a smile, thinking he'd decided to text her instead.

But her blood ran cold when she realized who it was. She'd almost completely forgotten why she was in Tulsa as much fun as she'd been having and the connection she'd made with Eliot Spencer.

Sophie was texting, wondering if she made any progress. With shaking hands, Cora had typed that she'd made some leeway with Eliot but the subject of a book just hadn't come up.

 _Well, it needs to come up and soon, darling. Mr. Sterling is getting impatient and I need to get back to New York._

 _I'm seeing him again soon, I'll see what I can do._

 _I certainly hope so. For all of our sakes._

Cora sank onto the bed, holding her face in her hands. _What am I going to do?_

* * *

Nate could hear a muffled noise coming from his niece's room. He knocked softly on the door.

"Come in," Cora's voice was soft.

"Hey, what's wrong?" he asked, entering the room. "Did the date not go well?"

Cora shook her head. "It went wonderful! I really like him, we're gonna go out on a second date."

Nate looked perplexed. "Then why?"

Cora put her phone in his hand, showing him the text and waving at it. "That. That's what's wrong! I actually forgot why I was here. I can't lie to him."

"So don't," Nate said, looking at the phone.

"What are you talking about?"

"If you don't bring up the book, you don't have to lie about it. Cora . . .relax, okay? Go take a bath. Enjoy yourself. Let Uncle Nate handle Sophie Deveraux."

"Really?" Cora raised a skeptical eyebrow.

"Have I let you down before?"

"Well there was that time in . . . ."

"That wasn't my fault! Trust me, I've got this." He pushed her toward the bathroom. "Go, I even put a set from that bath store your mom says you love in there. Enjoy."

Cora finally nodded. "Okay. And if Eliot calls?"

"I'll come and get you. Or at least I will yell through the door. Now go!"

Cora giggled and closed the bathroom door behind her. Nate looked down at the phone in his hands and wrote down Sophie Deveraux's contact information.

"Alright, Ms. Deveraux, let's play a little game."


	6. Chapter 6

"A driving range?" Cora sounded skeptical on the phone. "I've never really golfed before, Eliot. Mini golf yes, but real golf, I don't know."

Eliot grimaced, the driving range had sounded like a good idea when he thought of it. Miniature golf on the other hand was something Parker and Hardison took Dash to do. He could only imagine how long it took them to get through with a four year old. He had heard of a more challenging course that was near his favorite cafe, so he taking a deep breath, he suggested it.

"That sounds more fun," Cora agreed sounding so delighted that Eliot put away his misgivings about the place. He liked making women happy after all. "I mean you did win the bet though."

"It's alright, I was planning on taking you to my favorite place for dessert anyway. So how about 3? We'll grab a quick bite and then dessert?"

"Sounds fantastic, I'll see you then."

"Eliot's picking me up at 3," Cora explained to her uncle as she checked her makeup in the hallway mirror. "I doubt I'll be late since he's got to get back to his little boy but I won't be home for dinner."

"I won't wait up," Nate chuckled. "And kiddo, relax and enjoy, okay? I've got a plan to handle your boss that I'll be putting into place."

"Nothing shady, right?" Cora asked, narrowing her eyes and looking at him.

"Nothing shady, scout's honor."

"Hmm," Cora looked him over. "I happen to know you actually were a scout, so I'll believe you. This time."

A truck was pulling up the drive. "I'm guessing that's your date."

"Do you want to meet him?" Cora asked.

Nate laughed. "Maybe next time, you're not 16 and I'm not your dad. Go have fun."

"Thanks, Uncle Nate, for everything." Cora kissed him on the cheek and flew out the door.

Nate watched her go ,standing to the side of the window and smiled when she leaned into Eliot for a short kiss before he helped her up into the truck. Spencer seemed like a gentleman even though Nate had a very strong guess why he wasn't going to write a book. The motives behind that why still were a mystery, but Nate wasn't sure that was his business. Nate shook his head. He probably shouldn't encourage this relationship when there were secrets behind it. But Cora was so lonely and she glowed when she talked about this man. He'd know more when he met Eliot, but he'd seen the way the younger man had smiled at his niece when they broke off the kiss. And that was enough for him. Maybe they could find something real enough that the rest wouldn't matter.

Now for Sophie Deveraux, super agent.

* * *

Sophie Deveraux was miffed. That was an understatement. This trip to Oklahoma was a disaster and all she wanted to do was go home. Cora apparently was useless and she made a mental note to have Amy craft an new ad for a personal assistant when she got back to the office. Sophie huffed, well Cora wasn't bad as an assistant, she supposed it wasn't her fault that she was a terrible actress. Or too bloody shy to just get this over with. Sophie wasn't sure what the problem was, but whatever it was, Cora was failing at it.

If only Eliot Spencer was less of a country boy or more of a bumpkin, Sophie would have handled him herself. But judging from the blog, Eliot was not a simpleton nor was he naive. He would know straight off the bat that she was way out of his league and be suspicious as to her motives. A naive country boy, now he'd be flattered by the attentions of a sophisticated woman. Sophie sighed, that's why she'd sent innocent Cora in, there was no way Eliot would see right through that act.

Although really if this fiasco was anyone's fault, other than Mr. Spencer's stubbornness, it was her wanker of a boss. Sophie always got her author except when she knew when to cut and run. Eliot Spencer should have been one of those times. It simply was not worth the hassle.

Really, blogger books were usually best sellers but they often were flashes in pans. No staying power once their devoted followers had all gotten their copies. This man wasn't worth wasting her resources in middle America.

But for some reason James Sterling was like a dog with a bone about this. So obsessed with snagging him.

Sophie felt like screaming. It was maddening. She'd been tempted more than once to start her own agency and this mess was getting closer and closer to pushing her over the edge. Whatever, she was going back to New York the day after tomorrow and leaving Cora to her own devices. Not that she had seen any of her assistant since the airport.

Maybe Amy should put that ad out, if Cora was more interested in well, whatever the hell it was she was doing that wasn't snagging Eliot Spencer.

Her phone rang, an unfamiliar number with a local area code. She answered it cautiously.

"Hello, I'm trying to reach Sophie Deveraux," the man's voice came across the line.

"This is she, how may I help you?"

"Ah, Ms. Deveraux, I'm Nathan Ford and it's more how I can help you."

Sophie raised an eyebrow. "Nathan Ford, the crime novelist?"

"The very same," he chuckled. "Now are you interested in what I may have to offer?"

Sophie smiled. This was intriguing. "I'm listening."

* * *

Eliot had more fun at mini golf than he'd expected. It was all about the company. Cora was a lot of fun. She had a competitive streak, which made the game more challenging than just simple kids' stuff. She also wasn't above having a tiny bit of a wicked streak, not that he minded at all her attempts to distract him when he was making a shot by nuzzling his neck or stealing a kiss. The kisses were all still fairly chaste, but he a feeling that Cora would be a lot of fun in a totally different way if they lasted long enough to take it to the next level.

She'd read his mind by suggesting they drown his sorrows at losing (just barely!) to her with a trip to a hot dog stand before dessert. He liked that about her, she was the small town Indiana version of a down home country girl. He bet that she would take to life in Oklahoma just fine . . . .

Wow, he was gettin' way ahead of himself. This was date two with a girl that he'd just met a few days ago. Things were her were so easy though, like they'd always been with Aimee. He didn't have to work hard to please her or like her for that matter. They just clicked. He wondered about the asshole who broke her heart, he hoped the bastard regretted letting this sweet girl go.

"A French pastry shop?" Cora's eyes were wide as they pulled up to the cafe. "You are full of surprises, Eliot."

He grinned at her. "So I take it you're good with this?"

"Oh, yes! One of the things I love about New York is the pastry shop near my apartment, so this is perfect."

They sat at a table with cups of strong coffee and a sampler plate of goodies between them.

"How did you ever find this?" Cora asked.

"Well, I actually learned to cook from a French chef, it's a really long story. But I can't bake worth shit," Eliot's eyes widened but Cora didn't look offended by his slip into colorful language so he kept talking. "So I've had a craving and looked until I found it. It is a little out of the way but I'm usually here a couple of times a month. Champ loves it too."

"Admittedly I can't make French pastry, but I'm pretty handy with more American style baking. Chocolate chip cookies to die for, if I do say so myself."

"Cookies you say? I have a son who would love you forever if you came over and showed me how to make them."

"And what about you?"

"Well ma'am, I'd be mighty obliged to you for the recipe," he drawled with a grin.

She broke a piece of the pastry in front of her off and popped it in her mouth and chewed like she was thinking it over. She grinned flirtatiously at him. "You keep talking like that and you've got yourself a deal."

He tipped an imaginary hat at her. "You got it, ma'am."

She giggled and went back to enjoying her pastry. After a few more minutes of both of them eating, Eliot asked softly. "How long are ya plannin' on stayin'?"

She shook her head. "I don't know. Going back to New York is really not looking like something I want to do. I'm sort of dodging my boss . . ." at Eliot's concerned look, she added, "who luckily is on an extended vacation right now so doesn't call too often. But eventually I need to make up my mind. Part of me feels like I should go home. But . . ." and she looked over at him once more. "Uncle Nate has offered to make me his assistant. Which is an offer that's looking better all the time."

He grinned at her and despite his best efforts, blushed. "Oh, is it now?"

"Yeah," she smiled back. "Oklahoma's . . .nice."

He winked. "Yeah, it sure is."

It was Cora's turn to blush and he let her off the hook by changing the subject.

They were driving in comfortable silence back to her uncle's house that evening. It was fairly early but he had to get back to Dash. Cora mulled over what she'd said about staying. Uncle Nate really could use an assistant, so she was certain he was sincere about offering her that job. Maybe . . . .

Her thoughts were cut off by them pulling into the driveway.

"Well, I know you have to get home and I think my uncle went out tonight anyway, or I'd ask you in to meet him."

" Maybe next time," Eliot said. "Well uh . . . ."

"Yeah, I know. I'll call you tomorrow and we'll work out when we can make cookies?"

He nodded. "Sounds perfect, ma'am."

Cora giggled and undid her seatbelt. Eliot opened his door to go around and help her down. This time instead of offering her a hand, he put his hands around her waist and lifted her down, pulling her into him when she touched ground.

She laughed lightly. "I had a lot of fun, Eliot. Thank you."

He didn't answer, he just moved one hand from her waist to lightly caress her cheek before pulling her closer and kissing her. The kiss was soft but a little deeper than the kisses they'd shared earlier this evening, lasting longer before they both parted on a sigh.

"You would stay?" he asked suddenly.

She nodded. "Yeah, I'm starting to think I could."

He looked at her for a long moment and then pulled her in for another kiss. Maybe this could work. Maybe she could stay. She'd leave the mess with the literary agency in her rear view for good. And this sweet man would never, ever find out the true reason she'd come into his life. They'd find something real that would make the lie not mean anything at all.

And as she finally watched him drive away, she wished on a star that it would all work out.

* * *

A striking woman with black hair approached his table, "Mr. Ford?"

"Ah, yes, Ms. Deveraux," he got up and pulled out a chair for her. "You can call me, Nate."

"And you may call me Ms. Deveraux," she smiled, just a little air of predator in that smile. He liked it.

"A drink, Ms. Deveraux?" he asked, as the waiter came over. She ordered a Kir Royale and he got a Scotch.

"So you had a business proposal for me . . .Mr. . . .Nate?"

"Is it always down to business with you?" he asked, leaning back. "Or do you mix business with pleasure?"

She leaned back as well studying him. "It depends. What are you suggesting?"

"Why don't we wait for our drinks and I'll explain."

Sophie rolled her eyes but he could tell it was more for show. "I would normally tell you to stop wasting my time," but she motioned upwards with her hands. "But it seems that I have nothing but time while I remain in Tulsa. So we'll play by your rules . . . for now."

"Fair enough," he smirked at her.

The drinks came in short order and he lifted his glass, "to a profitable partnership."

"We'll see," she said, but clinked her glass against his anyway.

"So, Ms. Deveraux . . . ."


End file.
